"Damn, I don't know which son of a bitch with a cursed family grave posted my phone number on a matchmaking website!"
The voice was lowered, the tone slightly heavy, obviously furious to the extreme.
Upon hearing this, Feng Ziheng, who had intended to leave, paused again.
Turning his head, he could see the hand holding the phone, with long fingers, distinct knuckles, each one slender. A breeze blew in, lightly lifting the hem of a light blue dress, fluttering at the edge of light and shadow.
The elegant and tranquil scenery of the courtyard, backed by the azure sky, inadvertently revealed a touch of tranquil elegance.
However, that was merely a momentary impression.
The owner of the phone was, at this moment, enraged.
Meanwhile—
Ling Sanye, who had just answered the phone, was taken aback by the outburst of rage.
Rare to see.
This girl could also blow her top.
After a pause, Ling Sanye, quite intrigued, asked, "Who did you offend this time?"
"Who..." Lowering her head in thought, after a moment, Chu Liangxia seemed disdainful, "Someone so boring, childish, and stupid, I can't remember."
"Pfft," unable to suppress a chuckle, Ling Sanye, feeling helpless, said, "Give me the website, I'll help you contact them to have it removed."
Chu Liangxia mentioned the website name without hesitation.
Having Sanye's help and not using it would be foolish.
"You're at the Feng Family's place now, right? How is it going?"
"Called it off." Chu Liangxia leaned back, against the wall, and said nonchalantly, "The Feng Family's guy is said to be a special forces member. Who knows if he could die in combat. You know how it's been with the peacekeeping recently, just a few minutes of footage kept me awake for a week. Marrying someone like that, sure, there's prestige and status, but it's nerve-wracking. Just the thought of possibly receiving an urn in return is unbearable..."
As she continued, the subject drifted further afield, yet within that nonchalant tone, there seemed to emerge a hint of helplessness and melancholy.
She was describing a current situation, a fact.
Unbeknownst to her, to another person's ears, it inadvertently became a form of caution.
Feng Ziheng stood in place, listening to her talk about peacekeeping missions, about a friend whose fiancé died overseas right after their engagement, and how she couldn't even get a last look because of another operation.
There was resentment in her voice, but even more so a rational assessment.
It was a concept that didn't belong to him or to them.
Even—
It sounded, perhaps, too provincial.
Yet, every word of that almost ranting speech fell on his ears without missing a beat.
"Forget it, I should head back."
Having ranted, Chu Liangxia pressed her forehead, ready to wrap up the conversation.
After a pause, Ling Sanye, quite concerned, asked, "Do you want me to come and pick you up?"
"No need, you're busy," Chu Liangxia decisively refused, thought for a moment, and added, "After all, he is my dad."
This time, her insistence on breaking off the engagement had surely left the Feng Family fuming, and Chu Yunxiao must be raging mad by now.
She anticipated that once she left the Feng Family's gate, her situation would turn dire.
Without dwelling on it, Chu Liangxia ended the call, put the phone in her bag, and turned to walk back.
Meanwhile, Feng Ziheng, who had been standing still, slightly turned his head, catching a glimpse of the fluttering dress hem from the corner of his eye, his expression growing somewhat somber.
However, he didn't linger.
Along the winding corridor, he walked towards his own quarters.
"Brother!"
When he was about to reach the doorway, he heard a call from ahead.
Feng Ziheng looked up and saw Feng Zichen approaching quickly.
Slightly shorter than Feng Ziheng, he was dressed in a shirt and casual pants, but with the top two buttons of his shirt undone, looking a bit disheveled, and a baseball cap on his head that clashed with his outfit but was carried off with an unruly charm.
After only a glance at him, Feng Ziheng withdrew his gaze.
"I have some good news. I heard from the butler that your engagement has been called off," Feng Zichen began, shrugging his shoulders. "There's also some bad news, do you want to hear it?"
"No."
A cold refusal.
He walked past him, heading straight forward.
"Hey—" Feng Zichen hurried to keep up, laughing with schadenfreude, "The bad news is, mom seems to have found someone else for you, and she's arranged for you to meet them in a few days."
Feng Ziheng gave him a chilly sideways glance.
Feng Zichen immediately stopped in his tracks.
"Who?" Feng Ziheng asked, his voice cold as he furrowed his brows.
"The Lu Family's, Lu Youyi. She graduated from the National Defense University just like you, two years junior to you," Feng Zichen explained. "She left the force two years ago to take over the family business. But, you might have something in common to talk about."
After a brief pause, Feng Ziheng looked at him coldly, "You know her well?"
"She often visits our house," Feng Zichen touched his nose.
"I will not meet her." His refusal was as resolute as it was cold.
```
"This was introduced by mom."
Feng Zichen leaned closer stealthily.
A cold glance was thrown over.
Immediately, he stopped.
He grinned sheepishly, raising a finger, "One last thing."
Feng Ziheng raised his eyebrows.
He gestured: Spit it out.
"Given that posting small ads can damage one's image, I put that number on a dating website," Feng Zichen said as he furrowed his brows in confusion, continuing, "However, it seems that person has some backing. It was only up for a few hours before it got deleted."
"Oh." He responded indifferently.
"Should I continue?"
"No need."
After a brief response, Feng Ziheng walked on.
But—
He had only walked a few steps when he put two pieces of information together in his mind, causing him to halt in his tracks.
The Mastermind, is it her?
Suddenly thinking of something, Feng Ziheng turned to the side, "Come here."
"Ah?"
Feng Zichen was startled for a moment before quickly stepping over to his side.
Feng Ziheng whispered a few words softly.
"Her?" Feng Zichen raised his eyebrows in slight surprise, "Didn't you cancel the engagement with her?"
"Not going?" Feng Ziheng asked with a slightly lowered voice, frowning in return.
"Going, going, going."
Right away, Feng Zichen nodded like a lackey.
*
Chu Liangxia had barely reached the doorway when she saw Chu Yunxiao and Lou Ruhui coming out.
Upon seeing her, Chu Yunxiao's already cold face instantly gathered a storm of darkness in his eyes, and he violently glared at her.
Lou Ruhui looked at her but said nothing more.
Bowing her head slightly, Chu Liangxia followed behind silently.
Just as they stepped out, the door behind them closed, and simultaneously, Chu Yunxiao and Lou Ruhui, who were walking in front, also stopped.
"Chu Liangxia, get your ass over here!"
A low roar bellowed out as Chu Yunxiao turned around, his gaze filled with anger.
After a moment's hesitation, Chu Liangxia set her eyes on him, then glanced over at Lou Ruhui, keenly sensing a flicker of satisfaction flash across her expression.
Ultimately, Chu Liangxia moved her feet and walked toward Chu Yunxiao.
With each step, the pressure on her body intensified.
When she arrived in front of Chu Yunxiao, just as she stopped, she felt a gust of wind sweep in from the side.
The motion was too swift; Chu Liangxia had barely realized it before she was harshly struck by the slap.
"Smack."
An unmerciful force.
Her head was sharply turned by the blow, and in an instant, her ears rang. After a momentary loss of sensation, intense pain surged through her left cheek.
Instinctively covering her left face, Chu Liangxia looked up at Chu Yunxiao.
A warm liquid slid down from her left eye, her vision alternating between clarity and blur. Chu Yunxiao's dark, stern face and Lou Ruhui's vicious smile, however, were exceptionally clear.
In that moment, Chu Liangxia's hand covering her face began to tremble slightly.
"Heh."
A single word uttered with a sigh, brimming with deep disappointment.
Chu Yunxiao looked at her coldly, his face devoid of any guilt, his rage burning even fiercer.
"Chu Liangxia, are you determined to ruin this family before you can rest?!"
Pointing at her, Chu Yunxiao demanded in a roar.
Her right hand, which had been hanging down, clenched tightly into a fist.
Her left hand paused, fiercely wiping the tears from her left eye.
When she lowered her hand again, her figure was erect, the last traces of emotion had vanished from her eyes and brows, and on her delicate face, there was only coldness.
"Creak—"
The door behind them was pushed open.
At once, Chu Yunxiao and Lou Ruhui both looked up towards the entrance.
"Mr. Chu, reprimanding your daughter at the doorstep of my Feng family, isn't this a bit inconsiderate of the circumstances?"
```